PR Newswire
HELSINKI, Feb. 1, 2024
HELSINKI, Feb. 1, 2024 /PRNewswire/ --
Q4/2023 (year-on-year)
Full year 2023 (year-on-year)
Key highlights
Proposed dividend
The Board of Directors will propose a dividend of EUR 0.10 (EUR 0.60) per share at the Annual General Meeting on 20 March 2024. In addition, the Board of Directors proposes that the AGM would authorise the Board of Directors to decide at its discretion on the payment of an additional dividend up to a maximum of EUR 0.20 per share.
Guidance
Stora Enso's full year 2024 operational EBIT is expected to be higher than for the full year 2023, EUR 342 million.
Outlook
Stora Enso expects market conditions to remain uncertain in 2024, with ongoing pressure on demand, prices and margins. However, there are some positive signs such as increasing pulp prices, declining global pulp inventories, less customer destocking, and lower inflation and interest rates.
The first quarter is not expected to show a significant market improvement following a historical low fourth quarter in 2023 and a slow recovery. All variable costs continued to ease in the fourth quarter, except for wood, which are expected to follow similar trends also in the first quarter this year. The potential risk of logistical challenges from the Red Sea area could disrupt the flow of goods and increase costs.
The Packaging Materials and Wood Products divisions continue to suffer from low demand, prices and volume. Although demand for Wood Products remains stable, it is weak due to the ongoing continued slowdown in the construction industry. While there has been a slight improvement in demand for Wood Products from Europe, it is mostly driven by customer inventory build-up. Value chain destocking for Packaging Materials is coming to an end during the first half of 2024, which may support a slight recovery especially in the consumer board segment.
In Biomaterials, the pulp market is showing signs of stabilising and inventory levels are normalising. And while new capacity is ramping up in Latin America, downstream demand remains fragile. There are signs of improvement in Europe, while demand in China has weakened slightly due to oversupply and low season. Packaging grades demand is still struggling, while the tissue sector continues to perform solidly.
Packaging Solutions expects a stronger sequential demand in the first half of the year due to the greenhouse season. However, low demand leads to high price and margin pressure due to containerboard price reductions, inflation-driven fixed costs, and overcapacity. The Forest division expects no major changes in outlook from the previous quarter, with wood demand expected to start rising gradually.
During the second half of 2023, Stora Enso implemented significant restructuring measures to enhance its financial performance going forward. These included the closure of sites and production lines, the sale of assets, the adoption of a more decentralised operating model, and a reduction of employees by approximately 1,150. These actions are expected to improve the Group's cost competitiveness and streamline its organisation, leading to a stronger financial performance in the years to come.
Building on last year's cost-saving initiative, Stora Enso will further pursue profit turnaround and cash flow improvements to reduce costs and improve competitiveness. A new profit improvement programme targeting annualised EUR 80 million improvement of the operational EBIT has been initiated. This could lead to a potential reduction of approximately 1,000 employees.
Key figures
EUR million | Q4/23 | Q4/22 | Change % Q4/23–Q4/22 | 2023 | 2022 | Change % 2023–2022 |
Sales | 2,174 | 2,864 | -24.1 % | 9,396 | 11,680 | -19.6 % |
Operational EBITDA | 212 | 515 | -58.8 % | 989 | 2,529 | -60.9 % |
Operational EBIT | 51 | 355 | -85.8 % | 342 | 1,891 | -81.9 % |
Operational EBIT margin | 2.3 % | 12.4 % | | 3.6 % | 16.2 % | |
Operating result (IFRS) | -326 | 705 | -146.2 % | -322 | 2,009 | -116.0 % |
Result before tax (IFRS) | -378 | 666 | -156.8 % | -495 | 1,858 | -126.7 % |
Net result for the period (IFRS) | -325 | 584 | -155.7 % | -431 | 1,536 | -128.0 % |
Forest assets1 | 8,731 | 8,338 | 4.7 % | 8,731 | 8,338 | 4.7 % |
Operational return on capital employed (ROCE), LTM2 | 2.4 % | 13.7 % | | 2.4 % | 13.7 % | |
Operational ROCE excl. Forest division, LTM2 | 1.0 % | 20.4 % | | 1.0 % | 20.4 % | |
Earnings per share (EPS) excl. FV, EUR | -0.64 | 0.32 | n/m | -0.73 | 1.55 | -147.0 % |
EPS (basic), EUR | -0.36 | 0.74 | -148.9 % | -0.45 | 1.97 | -123.0 % |
Net debt to LTM2 operational EBITDA ratio | 3.2 | 0.7 | | 3.2 Werbung Mehr Nachrichten zur Stora Enso Oyj ADR Aktie kostenlos abonnieren
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